Nuisances aside, Mr. B and I will never consider a split-level. If the master bathroom cannot be reconfigured to accommodate a fully enclosed toilet, forget about it. So far, those are pretty much the two things that will turn us off an otherwise perfectly fine house.
What are your real estate “non-negotiables”? 
Gas cooking
Has to be bright and sunny. Proximity to water. Preferably water view. Deep soaking bathtub. Lots of stuff regarding location.
Forgot to say NO LEAKS (after living for twenty years in a house that was fabulous but leaked like a sieve. We were NEVER able to fix those leaks.)
Agree on gas for cooking.
High quality construction.
Curb appeal.
A kitchen with decent counter and storage space.
A dining area that can accommodate at least 8 when needed.
A garage where vehicles can be parked indoors.
Plenty of clean, drinkable water.
No excessive noise from outside (or soundproofed windows to minimize it).
A minimum of 2 bathrooms.
A laundry room in the living space (not basement).
Decent storage space.
No low ceilings.
If I don’t like the cosmetic stuff, that could always be changed.
My list is pretty long. I guess I’m picky.
Single level. Have never lived in a house with stairs inside and, at my age, would not want to start learning how now
Location, location, location.
Anything else can be modified. We’re on our third complete house renovation which involved gutting the interior down to the studs and adding whatever we want.
Agree that location is the biggie. Also like quiet location with minimal road noise and all one story.
Depending on the age of the house, Styrofoam siding could be another big no-no for us.
An eat-in kitchen where four can sit comfortably facing each other. I don’t like a row of four bar stools where everyone sits facing the same way.
When we were selling our last house, apparently a deal breaker for one couple was that our master bedroom faced the front yard. It was a fairly quiet street, and so I didn’t realize that was a thing.
Edited to add: a flat driveway. Some of them are really steep, and this was important when our kids were young.
Absolutely must have-
Bathtub large enough to soak
Gas cooktop
Kitchen with plenty of countertop and storage
Laundry room
Lots of natural lighting
High ceiling
For H
View
Close to water
Must haves for location not specific house-
Not to hot in summer/not to cold in winter
H would never buy the nicest house in the “okay” neighborhood. He would buy the house with potential in the best neighborhood he could afford. H sees real estate as an investment.
My H for many years built quality spec homes and would never buy a new tract home.
Absolutely, location. Not off a busy road, that is a big deal for me. Nothing that looks like it could require major reconstruction…like mold issues, yuck. Water is the biggest problem around this area.
Are you going to have to borrow money? I hope not, interest rates are going up, and it’s driving us crazy (we have an adjustable loan).
Oh, a good one, bus - no mortgages. Ever.
That’s awesome, Bunsen!!! No mortgages, yes!!
Our loan adjusts in May (for a 5 year time frame). Looked at getting a 15 year refi, and the rates have gone up so crazy fast, I think it’s not worth it and we’ll just suck it up. I would love to not have a mortgage. Maybe that’s what we’ll do with our extra cash when we pay off our debt. I can’t imagine being totally debt free. 
Rates have gone up a bit, @busdriver11, but remember that they are still very low historically.
Yes, I can still remember having a mortgage with an interest rate of 12% or more in the 1990s. Our income was low, so we really had to stretch to jake things work. The lowest our mortgage ever got was 5%.
Having at least 1.5 bathrooms, preferably 2 would be a priority as well. Bathtubs are NOT essential.
12%, that’s just crazy, wow!
In our case, our mortgage is at 2.875%. In May, it adjusts (max of 4.875%), but I think it will be closer to 3.5-3.75%, and then it stays that way for 5 years. I know these are still low rates right now, like doschicos says, but the best deal I can find right now is a 15 year fixed at 3.75%, with about 18K in closing costs. The mortgage payment would jump about 3K per month, and those closing costs are painful. Thinking about taking our chances, and just trying to pay it of as quickly as possible, particularly if it jumps up significantly after five years.
Wow, I’ve never had rates as low as yours! I still remember when I earned 9% in a savings account in the 1980s. I guess I’m dating myself!
At this point in our lives, we are content to have no debt. We will try to help our kids buy a place but we like sleeping well at night and are trying to simplify our lives.
I suppose if we needed to remodel for aging in place, we’d have to consider whether we can pay it all at once or take out a loan. Which brings us back to thus thread–Want housing where we can age in place.
I think we would all LOVE to get 9% in a savings account!
Both you and Bunsen are really lucky to not have a mortgage. How freeing to have no debt. That way she doesn’t have to rush like crazy to find something, just to buy before the rates skyrocket.
If we did buy a new home, I’d really like it to be more environmentally friendly.